


Shadows of the Past

by wateronyx



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/F, Post-Canon, adora finds the drawing catra had scratched out, minor background Scorpia/Perfuma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:41:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25108639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wateronyx/pseuds/wateronyx
Summary: When Adora had asked Catra a few days prior if she would join her, Scorpia, and Perfuma on a trip to the Fright Zone to assess the situation and start planning how they will rebuild Scorpia's kingdom, Catra had said yes. Because it was Adora who had asked, and because she owed it to Scorpia, and because, if she was being honest, spending all day in the castle was beginning to bore her.But once Adora remembers the drawing they had made on their bed when they were children, and tells her how she wants to see it again before they tear it all down, Catra realizes just how grave of a  mistake she has made.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 247





	Shadows of the Past

**Author's Note:**

> someone has probably already written about this but I haven't seen it so-

“Hey, this place has never looked better,” Perfuma said, clasping her hands in front of her chest as her eyes ran over the walls, covered in vines and flower sprouts.

Catra rolled her eyes. “It’s still the Fright Zone. Under all these flowers, it’s nothing but rusty walls and… and-”

“Bad memories,” Adora finished. A stern expression adorned her face as her eyes studied their surroundings. “Well, it soon won’t be that way anymore. Scorpia, we’ll help you rebuild everything from the ground up,” she said, putting her hands on her hips.

Scorpia rubbed the back of her neck, turning around to face Adora and Catra. “You know, I really appreciate that, but you guys don’t have to help me. My grandfather willingly let the Horde stay, so the responsibility falls on me to-”

“Nonsense!” Perfuma spun around, a scowl on her face. “Scorpia, you’re a princess! Princesses don’t let other princesses rebuild their kingdoms alone!”

Scorpia gave a sheepish smile and nodded, and with that, they made their way inside the ruins of the Fright Zone. Catra shuddered as they advanced through the halls. The outside had changed so much that, for a moment, she had almost forgotten it was, in fact, the Fright Zone, but the inside was almost untouched. The halls were dark, and walking through them just after she had finally gotten used to the wide, bright halls of Bright Moon made a shiver run up her spine. It was familiar and nostalgic in the worst way. All of the power had gone out. The only lights illuminating the corridors were the little rays of sun that slipped through where the vines had pierced the metal. Water seeped through the cracks, and everything was either rusting or molding.

But what unnerved Catra the most was how empty it was. Everybody had fled. Whether they wanted to continue their life of crime or not, they all knew they should go as far away as possible. Catra kept looking around, expecting to see a soldier appear from behind every corner. She couldn’t help but wonder where they all were, and if she would ever get to see some of them again. Although what she would do if she did, she had no idea. A part of her never wanted to see any of them again, and yet another part missed them.

“Actually, I think Catra is right,” Perfuma spoke, her voice echoing against the walls, “this place still reeks of negative energy.”

“Aw, c’mon, it’s not that bad. I mean, it’s not… great, either, but I still have some good memories here,” Scorpia said, although her voice betrayed her uncertainty. Then she lit up, turning to look at Catra and Adora. “Like that time Catra and I prepared for Princess Prom and hanging out with Entrapta. Man, we should bring the whole trio back together sometime! What do you say, Catra?”

Catra stiffened, locking eyes with Scorpia’s big, bright, way too enthusiastic ones. “Um… yeah, sure,” she averted her gaze to the floor, and hoped Scorpia would forget about it. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to hang out with the two of them, but if just being around Scorpia and Entrapta already made guilt well up in her stomach, she didn’t know if she’d be able to spend time alone with both of them and enjoy it, too. Then again, maybe that was the least she could do for them after everything.

She almost didn’t notice Adora looping their arms. “Catra and I also had some good times here.” She puffed her chest, like it was an accomplishment, which wasn’t entirely false.

“Yeah, despite Shadow Weaver’s best efforts,” Catra said, earning a laugh from Adora and Scorpia.

“I wonder where Octavia went. Do you remember how she used to chase us? Or how we used to fill Kyle’s bed with bugs? Or-or that time we drew our faces on our bed? Shadow Weaver got so mad,” Adora laughed, recounting their childhood.

Lost in her reminiscing, she didn’t notice how Catra stiffened and how her face fell as she mentioned their drawing. She felt hot and cold at the same time, and Adora’s hold on her arm had become heavy and no longer comfortable, now feeling like a shackle holding her in place, and she had to fight the urge to shake it off.

“Wait, you were made to share a bed? Gosh, the Horde couldn’t even provide you with your own sleeping space,” Perfuma huffed, revolted, placing her hands on her hips.

“Oh no, no,” Adora turned to her. “Theoretically, Catra had the bed above mine, but she never used it.”

“Oooooh,” Scorpia perked up. “I thought that was just Catra’s bed. Now it makes sense why she tore apart the mattress.”

“Scorpia!” Catra shot her a look, her wide eyes begging her to shut up. Adora went silent, and Catra felt her arm tense around hers. She looked at Adora, but she remained turned away from her, and Catra suddenly realized she shouldn’t have come along. Why had she ever thought a trip to the Fright Zone was a good idea?

The tension had become palpable, and Scorpia gave her an apologetic look. “Well, it does not matter anymore,” Perfuma broke the silence, “we will tear all of it down anyway, and then it’ll be just a memory.”

Adora’s arm tightened around Catra’s again, and she looked back at her, her face just as bright as before. “Yeah, it’s probably better that way. But I kinda wanna see it again. You know, one last time,” she smiled, giving Catra a hopeful look.

“W-what?” Catra asked, a little shocked by Adora’s quick recovery.

“The bed! I mean, the drawing. I would always stare at it until I fell asleep, I can’t just let it all be torn down without seeing it again.”

Catra’s eyes widened. “Adora, I-”

“Oh, well, you’re gonna have to be quick then,” Scorpia interjected. “The dorms are like, on the other side, and we have to go back soon and start making actual plans.”

“Yeah, Scorpia and I will check what’s left of Hordak’s Sanctum and go back out at the front, we’ll meet you there,” Perfuma said.

With that, Adora grabbed Cara’s hand and began dragging her along, and Catra felt both her heart and her lungs give up on her.

“Adora, I really don’t think this is worth it. I mean, it- it probably got destroyed when I fought Hordak anyway,” Catra tried to reason with her, praying that Adora would change her mind. 

Adora shook her head. “It’s on the other side, Catra! Hordak wasn’t that strong,” she laughed, painfully oblivious to Catra’s internal turmoil.

This was bad. This was so, so bad. If Adora saw it… if Adora saw Catra had scratched her face... How was she going to apologize for that? What would she even say? Catra wanted nothing more in that moment than to go back in time and deck her past self in the face. Why did she always have to make things so much worse for herself?

They reached the dorms, and Adora let go of Catra’s hand, skipping inside. Catra froze in front of the entrance, not daring to enter. Maybe she could just leave. She could run away right then, and then she’d never see Adora again. Then she’d never have to explain why three years ago she had a breakdown and scratched her best friend’s face out from the drawing they both made when they were children.

Slowly, she stepped inside. Adora was crouched on the bed, her hand lingering on the wall, and Catra didn’t need to come closer to know what she was looking at. Adora was silent. Catra preoccupied herself with the floor, not daring to approach her.

When Adora hadn’t said anything for over two minutes, Catra decided she couldn’t take the twisting in her stomach anymore. “Adora, I’m sor-”

“You scratched me out,” Adora said, her eyes still glued to the wall. Her voice rang hollow, but it filled Catra’s stomach with guilt and shame all the same. She felt inadequate, she felt like she shouldn’t be there, she felt angry at herself, and she didn’t know what the right thing to say was.

“It was a long time ago, I did it after you left, I-I didn’t think about it, I was just angry and-and I didn’t know what to do, and I’m sorry,” she rambled, darting her eyes around the room, anywhere but at Adora, hoping Adora would just accept her weak apology and they could move on and never bring this up again.

“No, I… I’m sorry. I never realized how you must have felt after I left,” Adora said, her voice quiet but firm.

Catra turned, startled, but Adora still faced away from her. “Adora, I… no. I get why you left, and I could’ve gone with you, but I didn’t. You don’t have to apologize for that.” She wrapped her arms around herself, and her ears pressed against her head. Hearing Adora apologize was… uncomfortable.

She nearly jumped when Adora got up, and she saw the way her eyes shone way more than they should. “I’m still sorry, though.”

Before Catra could argue, she closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around her. Catra instinctively returned the hug, laying her palms on Adora’s back and burying her nose in the crook of her neck. “Hey, as long as you don’t find another war to get involved in and leave me behind for, it’s fine.”

Adora huffed and tightened her hold on Catra. She planted a kiss on her forehead before leaning back to look at her. A mischievous smile spread across her lips. “Do you think that box of crayons is still somewhere around here?”

Turns out, the box was indeed still under Kyle’s bed. Before they could change their mind, the two had settled on their old bed, and a new, better, in Catra’s opinion, drawing decorated the wall. They redrew themselves under their old drawing, this time holding hands. It was silly, and it was going to be destroyed together with the rest of the Fright Zone soon, but it brought a warmth to Catra’s chest that she couldn’t describe, but that she would cherish forever.

“Wow, I think we were more talented when we were eight,” Adora commented.

“Shut up,” Catra smiled as she drew a small heart above their hands. She noticed Adora had gone silent and turned to her to see what had caught her attention.

She did not expect to see Adora staring at her with wide eyes, her hands clasped over her mouth. She knew that face. “Oh no,” she said, as she felt the fur on her tail stand on its end.

“That is so cute,” Adora exclaimed, looking at her like it was taking all of her willpower to not crush Catra in another hug.

Catra hissed. “Adora, stop it, or I’m gonna scratch this one too, believe me!”

…

“Do you think they got lost?” Perfuma asked, a worried expression decorating her face as she glanced between the door and Scorpia for the twentieth time.

Scorpia rested her chin on her pincher. “Well, they both grew up here, so, if anyone knows their way around, it’s them.”

“Maybe they forgot? I mean, Adora hasn’t been here in a while, and maybe Catra has suppressed all her memories of the Horde in an attempt to alleviate her trauma?” Perfuma tried reasoning.

Scorpia inspected the entrance. The darkness of the halls stared back at her. “Should we go look for them?”

Perfuma paused. She looked at the entrance again and then back at Scorpia. She mulled over her next words. “You know what, you said you wanted to show me the old throne room?”


End file.
